


the fall leaves and your hair

by savagerhapsody



Category: Carmilla (Web Series)
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-06-09
Updated: 2015-06-09
Packaged: 2018-04-03 13:26:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,530
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4102633
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/savagerhapsody/pseuds/savagerhapsody
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A hiking trip with a surprise. Danny/Laura.</p>
            </blockquote>





	the fall leaves and your hair

“Danny, can you help me with number three?”  
Laura was sprawled out on her bed, face buried in a chemistry textbook. Laura, being mostly inept in the subject of chemistry, had recruited Danny's help with her indecipherable homework. Danny glanced up from grading Lit essays.  
“I still don't know why you didn't just ask LaFontaine. She's way better at this than me.” said Danny.  
“Well...I did, but she had to stay late at the lab. You know how she is.”  
Laura felt a pang of guilt in her gut. That was a lie. In truth, she was really just searching for a reason to invite Danny over.  
“Here, let me see.”  
Danny reached over Laura to grab the textbook. She probably began to explain the problem to Laura, but Laura was far too distracted by Danny's lips moving to bother listening.  
“Does that make sense to you?” Danny asked.  
Laura nodded mutely. Danny leaned over to peer at Laura's notes and shook her head.  
“Laura, how do you make any sense of this? I can't read it at all.”  
“Well, it makes perfect sense to me,” Laura shot back, “And I should remind you that your comments on my essays aren't always exactly legible either.”  
Danny's eyebrows shot up at the unexpected sass, but giggled despite herself.  
Suddenly, the lump of sheets and blankets across the room let out a load groan.  
“No, its fine. I'm not trying to sleep or anything.” said Carmilla.  
“Carmilla, its 4:30.” Danny said.  
“Oh Danny, what's that? I can't quite hear you. You'll have to lean down so those of us not blessed with your Amazonian height can hear you.”  
Sensing the tension escalate, Laura quickly changed the subject.  
“So...did we figure out number three yet?”  
“OK. Which part were you most confused with...Oh Laura, look!” Danny suddenly rushed to the window and pointed outside, “The leaves have changed! I've been so absorbed in studying I never even noticed.”  
“Great. Miss OCD and Miss ADD together at last. You two make a lovely couple.” said Carmilla.  
“Carmilla...for once, please just shut up.” Laura said.  
Carmilla huffed and pulled the blankets over her head.   
“Fine.”  
Laura joined Danny at the window and sure enough, the trees outside were colored in vibrant golds, oranges, and crimsons.   
“Fall is my favorite season,” Danny admitted, “I just love it when the leaves turn...”  
Seeing an opportunity, Laura screwed up her courage.  
“Me too! We could...err...we should totally go see them sometime.”  
Danny's face brightened.  
“We could go hiking! There's some amazing trails just north of here,” Sensing her own over-exuberance, Danny leaned against Laura's wardrobe in an effort to look casual, “You know...if you want to. Its, you know, whatever.”  
Carmilla flung off her covers.  
“This is so awkward I'm actually in physical pain. Excuse me.”  
She grabbed her toothbrush and slammed the bathroom door shut.  
“I would love that. What are you doing Friday?” Laura said.  
Danny smiled. “I'm going hiking with you.”  
Laura finished her chem homework with Danny's help, and hugged her goodbye. Carmilla, mid-way through a thick philosophy tome, began to chuckle.  
Laura closed their door.  
“Is something funny?”  
“You hate hiking.”  
“Do not.”  
“You hate the outdoors. You hate nature.”  
“I don't hate nature,” Laura replied, “I'm just a little nature-adverse.”  
“Mm-hmm.”  
“Well, you try going outside and having your father point out all the insects, plants, and animals that can kill you. I currently boast a collection of thirty-one, yes, thirty-one cans of bear spray and I've never seen a bear in my life. So yes, the outdoors are scary. But...Danny is worth it.” said Laura.  
Carmilla made an odd sound somewhere between a hiss and a growl. Laura was pretty sure it was irritation.  
“Well, you're starting your new-found love on a foundation of lies. Let's see how well that turns out.”  
“Carmilla?”  
“Yes creampuff?”  
“Seriously, shut up.” 

 

Laura had no idea where they were going. Danny had picked her up in her car and drove about twenty minutes outside of campus, only to wind up in the middle of the woods. They were fortunate enough that the sun was shining brightly, the sky dotted by forms of fluffy white clouds. It was brisk, but not cold. They climbed out of her car and Danny stretched.  
“Ahh...so much better. This is the Vordenburg Nature Preserve. Do you like it? I've been here before with the Summer Society.”  
“No, its awesome.” Laura said.  
She did her best to hide her hesitation, but as they began to venture down the wooded path, Laura could feel herself getting anxious. She remembered when she was a child and her father would show her pictures in books—poisonous plants and venomous creatures. She took care not to touch any of the plants as she passed out of fear.  
Danny, however, was the opposite. Being around the verdant fall foliage seemed to bring out of her a joyful calm that Laura had not seen before. Danny made sure to point out all the different species of trees they came across.   
“The yellows are my favorite. Fall is just so amazing. Its like nature's last hurrah before the stillness of winter. Its amazing.”  
Danny glanced over at Laura and blushed in embarrassment.  
“I'm sorry, I'm talking too much. And about trees...ugh. Could I possibly be more boring?”  
“No Danny, its OK. Why do you love it?” said Laura.  
Danny considered the question. They trekked across a small stream. Danny was able to leap it in a single bound, but Laura had to make use of a slippery log bridge that ran across the stream. Just as she was wondering why she agreed to this in the first place, Danny answered.  
“I grew up in New Andover you know.”  
“New Andover? That's a pretty urban area.”  
Laura was surprised. From what she could gather, most of the student body at Silas University was made up of suburban upper-middle class white kids.  
“Yeah, sports is kind of my outlet. Growing up, we only had one tiny playground in our neighborhood, and one sports field three miles away.”  
As they talked, the path began to gradually slope upward.  
“When I got here, it was amazing. I've never had so much open space to run around in before. I'd never seen so much...green in my life. My freshman year, I was stunned by how gorgeous the trees were in the fall. I can't even imagine going back and living in the city ever again.”  
By this point, the path had sloped steeply upward, dotted by occasional clusters of rocks. Laura was struggling to keep up.  
“I'm totally rambling again, aren't I? I want to know more about you. I've got like, a million questions for you.”  
Danny asked Laura questions about everything as they climbed—family, friends, favorite movie, favorite Backstreet Boy (she was more of a Spice Girls kind of lady). For each stride Danny took, Laura would have to take two. The path kept continuing forward, and Laura was starting to gasp for air and sweating profusely. While Laura wondered how sexy she could possibly look in this moment, Danny stopped ahead to check a trail marker.  
“OK, we should be there in five minutes.”  
“There? Where is there? Danny, no offense I totally trust you and everything, but...where are we going?”  
Danny's eyes twinkled.  
“You'll see in five minutes! C'mon Hollis we're almost there!”  
Danny set off again with renewed vigor, while Laura simply attempted to stay upright and keep her legs moving.  
The ground eventually leveled and they came around a wide bend. The trees dissipated into a small clearing.  
There, a red-checkered blanket laid out on the grass. A small picnic basket revealed sandwiches, snacks, and a bottle of wine with two glasses. At the edge of the clearing was a cliff, which overlooked part of Silas' campus. In the far distance, Laura could see the sports field. Tiny ant-sized people were running around on the field. The trees in the valley created a breathtaking tapestry of color.  
“Oh my gosh Danny. Did you do all this? Its so beautiful.”  
Danny smiled and stared at Laura.  
“Yeah...it is beautiful.”  
They sat down on the blanket and Danny began unpacking the basket.  
“So...I wasn't sure what you liked so I brought a little bit of everything, and of course there's the dubious legality of my giving one of my underage students wine but...do you like it?”  
“Danny, I love it. I love spending time with you. This is so perfect...thank you.”  
They ate and talked until the horizon began to turn a deep orange. They laid on the blanket, fingers intertwined, debating the various shapes of clouds in the sky. Was it a train or a lizard? A horse or a camel? For dessert, Danny brought along a carton of strawberries which they playfully fed to each other, pink juice running down their chins.  
Eventually the sky grew so dark they knew they had to leave. They reluctantly packed up the basket and blanket and headed back down the trail, hand-in-hand.


End file.
